New fire station coming to Aurora's west side

Plans to build a $4 million fire station on Aurora's west side won approval Tuesday from the city council.

The new facility will replace a station that was built in 1957.

Assistant Chief of Support Services Donald Davids said Station 7, on Kenilworth Avenue in Lincoln Park, will remain fully operational while the new, 10,000-square-foot station is built about 15 feet away.

Construction is set to begin in May and be complete by late December. The old station will be demolished after the new one is operational.

The current building has room to house only one fire engine.

"We want to add an ambulance to our fleet, which we have never had there," Davids said. "The current layout doesn't allow for one."

"In '57, vehicles were smaller, people were smaller, and fitness equipment was not part of the equation," he said.

The station's kitchen, for example, measures only 8-by-10 feet.

Davids said the existing station was built to house two firefighters and a paramedic. The new station will have five staff members on duty 24 hours a day.

The style of the surrounding historic neighborhood, which includes Aurora University and Holy Angels School, was taken into consideration in designing the new facility.

"We looked at the architecture of Aurora University and chose elements that fit into the parklike setting," he said. "I believe we were very cost-conscious in our plan to design and build this station."

R.C. Wegman of Aurora was approved by council as construction manager for the project. The Architect is Dewberry Architects, Inc., with offices in Elgin and Chicago.

Davids said the city has not built a fire station since 2007, when Station 8 opened on the city's far east side.

"This project has been in the capital improvement plan for about 10 years," he said.